This is a music-inspired post, so it only seems right to give you the option of listening to music that inspired it while you read through and see the photos. This ice cream was inspired by the song Salt Peanuts as performed by The Quintet (Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell, Max Roach, & Charlie Mingus). I hope you'll click play before moving on!

I first received The Quintet's album Jazz at Massey Hall by mistake. Twice. Back in the day, I used to belong to those music clubs that would send you cassette tapes, and eventually cd's through the mail. I would start one up and receive my ten free albums (or something like that), and then fulfill my requirement...maybe buy a couple extra here and there...and then cancel my subscription.
Now, if you've ever belonged to one of these clubs, you know that six months or so after you've cancelled your subscription, they entice you into signing up again by offering you that same amazing deal of ordering one or two cd's and getting ten more for free. So I would sign up again and go through the whole rigamarole again. Over and over. I have no clue how these clubs made money. Apparently the general public really is getting ripped off, if cd's can be produced for pennies on the dollar. But alas, I digress.

When you sign up for these clubs, you can choose a specific type of music to see the most of in the catalogs they send you to choose from. I'm sure this was one of the times that I chose jazz. They sent you a little card with a featured selection, and if you didn't choose not to get that selection by a certain date, they would send it to you. Now, sometimes I would lose track of those little cards, and I'm sure that is exactly what happened to lead me to own my first copy of The Quintet.

Fortunately, I put it in and listened all the way through. And then played the whole thing over again. If you're a fan of jazz, it's hard not to fall hard for a live album recorded in 1953 by five legends, I mean come on!

But by far, Salt Peanuts is my favorite track on the album. I cannot sit still if it's on. I shimmy around the house getting chores done, or shake my moneymaker in front of the stove. It's contagious. Salt PEEEE-Nuts! Just listen, they're going to town...and they're taking me with them!

Now, I mentioned that I received the same cd twice. That is a mystery that I've never solved. Apparently the universe knew how much I dug it, and chose to put another one in my hands...so that I could pass on the love. Which I did.

Okay, so. I can totally see Salt Peanuts as the soundtrack to a silent movie in black-and-white, can't you? Perhaps set at the ballpark, with a guy cutting his way up and down the steps selling "salt peanuts! salt peanuts!".

It's been in the back of my mind to make something in the kitchen inspired by this song for some time now. I mean, have you read my tagline? I can't resist heading into the kitchen at the drop of a hat, so how can I resist turning Salt Peanuts into Salted Peanut Swirl Peanut Butter Ice Cream!?

Now that I've had the push to actually do so, I feel a new series coming on. I've got the food inspired by film...I've got the food inspired by books...and now I've got the food inspired by music. I'd say that's the Trifecta!

Salted Peanut Swirl Peanut Butter Ice Cream

Salted Peanut Swirl Peanut Butter Ice cream inspired by the song Salt Peanuts by The Quintet on the album Jazz at Massey Hall.

by Heather Schmitt-Gonzalez

Prep Time: 10 minutes (+ time to churn and freeze)

Cook Time: n/a

Keywords: dessert vegetarian peanuts frozen ice-cream American summer

Ingredients (approx. 1 quart)

for the peanut butter ice cream base:

1 cup natural peanut butter

2 cups half-and-half, divided

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup sugar

1-1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon good sea salt

for the salted peanut swirl:

1/2 cup natural peanut butter

1/4 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon powdered sugar

1 teaspoon good sea salt

1/2 cup salted Redskin Spanish peanuts

Instructions

Place a freezer-safe container, large enough to fit one quart of ice cream, into the freezer.

Place peanut butter, 1 cup of the half-and-half, sugar, vanilla, and salt into a large, deep bowl. Beat on low speed with a hand-mixer until smooth. Add remaining half-and-half and the heavy cream and whisk by hand (the mixer will make a mess, promise) until everything is well combined.

Pour into an ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer's instructions.

While the ice cream is churning, you can make the swirl by beating together the peanut butter, heavy cream, powdered sugar, and sea salt until it is as smooth as you can get it. Set aside.

Once the ice cream has finished churning, it should still be soft. Transfer to the container that you put in the freezer earlier. Plop and drizzle the reserved salted peanut swirl all over the top of the ice cream. Follow behind with the peanuts, scattering them over the mixture you just put down. Now, using a thin bladed knife, drag it through the peanuts and the swirl, back and forth so that the swirl and peanuts run throughout the entire pan.

Cover tightly and freeze for 2 hours before serving.

If not serving this all immediately, store in the freezer for up to a week, tightly covered. Once this ice cream has been in the freezer for more than a couple of hours, it gets pretty hard. You'll want to let it sit out at room temperature for 20 minutes or so before scooping.

Michiana-based food writer with a fondness for garlic, freshly baked bread, stinky cheese, dark beer, and Mexican food—who believes that immersing herself in different cultures one bite at a time is the best path to enlightenment.

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